The Disney empire strikes back

According to Duden, hype is defined as particularly spectacular, thrilling advertising that causes euphoric enthusiasm for a product. On the other hand, the term can also mean a deception staged for reasons of publicity or a wave of superficial enthusiasm. In any case, this is a rather temporary phenomenon. In the case of "Star Wars", however, this lasted for more than 50 years and inspired millions.

Since "Star Wars" has belonged to the Walt Disney Company, however, the hype has once again taken on completely new dimensions: In 2015, when the film "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" hit the cinemas, "Forbes" magazine estimated it the income from merchandise items for the media group to around 500 million US dollars. At the box office itself, the film grossed an unbelievable sum of more than two billion US dollars. It's the most successful installment in the franchise to date, and Disney has bigger plans.

But before we dive into the depths of the galaxy with you, we have a question for you:

Almost ten years ago, in October 2012, Disney took over George Lucas' production company Lucasfilm for around four billion US dollars, i.e. around 3.7 billion euros. A stroke of genius by the then CEO Bob Iger: in one fell swoop, The Walt Disney Company secured not only the "Indiana Jones" films, but also all the rights to the "Star Wars" saga.

It was not foreseeable that only a few years later streaming services would dominate. Disney launched its own Disney streaming service in November 2019, seven years after the mega deal with Lucasfilm. The overwhelming and generational popularity of "Star Wars" was an essential part of that.

Actor and producer Jon Favreau, who co-wrote the screenplay for Disney's hit series "The Mandalorian" and produced the series, also sees the streaming service as an important factor for the future. He revealed this in an interview with WELT at the Star Wars Celebration 2022, the world's largest fan gathering of the film series, in Anaheim, California: "I think streaming for 'Star Wars' is very valuable. It allows us to tell stories in a way that is not limited to an hour and a half. So in the case of 'Star Wars' we can tell storylines that last 300 to 400 minutes per season. Something like this would never have been possible before.”

Another advantage not to be underestimated: "It allows people to interact with the series from home, it's a completely different atmosphere. It's more like reading a novel. It creates a completely different connection.”

With currently 221.1 million subscribers, the service has now established itself ahead of Netflix at the top of the world's largest streaming providers. The success would not have been so rapid without the space adventures. This is also revealed by a look at the currently planned series that are still to come in 2022 and 2023. Around eleven projects currently come from the galaxy far, far away, created by George Lucas in 1977. They are called "Skeleton Crew", "Ahsoka" or "Andor".

When one new title after the other was announced at this year's Star Wars Celebration, the euphoria was great: lightsabers were raised, the "Star Wars" actors and creators received fanatical applause for every snippet, every mini-spoiler. With "Obi-Wan Kenobi" one of the most renowned projects started at the end of May. However, the series caused mixed reactions among fans. “Some storylines just don't make sense if you know the movies. That disappoints me more than I want to see it continue,” says Susan Meyer, for example. She got to be a fan at the series' streaming premiere in Anaheim.

All eleven films in the series released to date have collectively grossed more than $10 billion. Seven of the eleven strips can be found in the top 100 financially successful films of all time. It's not just the films that are financially worthwhile: According to the already mentioned report by "Forbes" magazine, exclusive special editions with various brands will generate sales of an estimated total of 20 billion US dollars by 2015 - and there is no end to the cash flow in sight.

A stroll along the stands and a visit to the panels at this year's Star Wars Celebration reveals the potential of the brand - and also shows how cleverly Disney uses it to create a sustainable brand world with immense consumer loyalty. After all, "Star Wars" fans are one thing above all: extremely loyal.

Anything adorned with a Baby Yoda is particularly popular and a real bestseller. The character is known as Grogu to The Mandalorian fans. Here the well-known child pattern greets as a sales incentive.

Pedro Pascal, the main actor of the series, was also aware of this when WELT asked him about Baby Yoda's secret of success at the Star Wars Celebration: "Grogu is probably also so popular because his character is simply incredibly implemented. It's a child-parent relationship that everyone can relate to."

The brand also uses "Star Wars" to create cross-overs, i.e. guest appearances in other films and series, with its even more successful film series, the Marvel film universe, or the "Simpsons" television series. There are also areas in the in-house Disneyland theme parks that bring the “Star Wars” world to life in an amazingly real way. They attract more than 28.5 million visitors every year to Disneyland Resort Anaheim alone.

It is also a win-win situation for many other corporations, as the example of Lego shows. The Danish toy manufacturer and Lucasfilm have been working together for over 20 years to produce and sell licensed products. They're not just targeting kids, but adults as well, as evidenced by the "Summer of Lego" panel at the Star Wars Celebration in Anaheim. The latest Lego items from the "Star Wars" universe were presented here.

In addition to animated series and films with a Lego look, which can also be seen on Disney, video games such as the "Skywalker Saga" or an Xbox game console in the exclusive Lego "Star Wars" design were presented. There are also limited-edition Lego kits that allow fans to recreate spaceships and stations as accurately as possible. The prices are stately: you can shell out up to 800 euros for rare sets like the “Millennium Falcon”.

Hasbro, Mattel, Bandai, watch manufacturer Citizen, video game manufacturers like EA or even car manufacturer VW also rely on the power of the empire when it comes to properly marketing products for the start of a new film or series. More than 200 exhibitors were represented in the exhibition area of ​​the Star Wars Celebration in 2022 - and that in the first year after the Corona pandemic.

The actors of the “Star Wars” series naturally become brand ambassadors, who are not taken amiss when they say that actress Emily Swallow casually reveals in an interview where she got her Mandalorian ring and that the manufacturer also happens to be on was represented at the fair. You are considered a fan of the "Star Wars" series yourself - and quite honestly: Is there anything you can blame fans for?

This is also a factor in the success of “Star Wars”. Commercialized pop culture is as deeply rooted here as the 50-year-old oak tree in your home garden. If you like this franchise even a little bit, you won't be able to avoid buying a t-shirt, a Lego set or funny Baby Yoda notes at some point. But is that really reprehensible?

After all, it's like this: If the new content like "Rogue One" or "Obi-Wan Kenobi" weren't produced with a lot of heart and soul by creators like Dave Filoni or Jon Favreau, they wouldn't be of much interest nowadays. That's why actor Carl Weathers, 72, feels so connected to the "Star Wars" saga. When he was allowed to take on the role of Greef Karga for "Mandalorian", it became a small fan dream for him.

For Weathers, the film series and series embody the eternal battle of good versus evil like no other - and that's exactly what people want to see, as he explains in the interview: "Everyone involved loves it and that's why it's always fun, no matter how long you spin."

So as long as the fans get into the hype, it will live on. Until George Lucas simply creates an even more successful film world.

You can get even more impressions of the spectacle at the Star Wars Celebration 2022 here:

The research was supported by Disney. You can find our standards of transparency and journalistic independence at axelspringer.de/independence.